My house, Your home

24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. 25 So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. 26 And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil. 28 If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. 29 Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. 30 And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:24-32 NLT

Paul is writing to the church at Ephesus here but the Lord was speaking to me as if it were fresh rhema directly to me. I'm not sure if when you read that passage it spoke to you like it did me but man, God began to speak to me about holiness right off the bat and continued to speak various things to me throughout. 

I kept reading...

Verse 26 tells of something we practice in our marriage. Like any good marriage we have our disagreements and "heated discussions". The principle here is to not go to bed on unresolved anger as it allows the enemy to accuse your spouse before you. Needless to say there have been many a late night in our house. :)-

I kept reading...

In verse 29 it talks of using foul language and I've never been one to talk trashy or cuss however the rest of that verse is more convicting. See, it was here that I felt the biggest conviction from the Holy Spirit. "Your words should be an encouragement to all those who hear them". Boom! Right there I knew God was trying to prune me in the area of talking to my kids & my husband in my own home. Anyone else have a problem with their mouth getting them into trouble?? We are comfortable at our own house & most comfortable with the people in our house. This leads us to say things that we would never imagine saying to other people. Words are powerful and they need to be an encouragement to EVERYONE - not just those we minister to or see at church, work, or school. Lord have mercy on us! 

As a homeschooling mom the amount of words spoken to my kids far out weigh all the others I speak to on a daily basis. But it's my words that are shaping my kids.

As if I wasn't already convicted enough the crescendo in verse 30 stopped me dead in my tracks. "Do not grieve the Holy Spirit or bring sorry to God by how I live". Sure, I know what you are thinking... I would never do that. Truth be told, we are guilty of this more than we realize. We as Christians walk upright before the Lord as best we can but so many times, without even knowing it, we grieve the Holy Spirit of God. 

What the Lord was speaking so clearly to me through this passage was that my house was often not a very good place for Him to dwell. At times I have dishonored my husband with my words, I have spoke condescendingly to my kids, and allowed my emotions to control me and act in ways I shouldn't. These things grieve the Lord and many a day God has not been comfortable in my house because of these things. He simply can't be "at home" in my house unless I create an atmosphere for Him to dwell and abide there. This brings me to a place of repentance and tears knowing that my actions could be hurting the heart of my Father. 
You may ask yourself what types of things would grieve God's spirit or cause Him to not feel at home in your house? I'm glad you asked. Verse 31-32 sums it up for us. Getting rid of our harsh words, our anger, bitterness and evil behavior. Trade those out for kindness, tenderness & forgiveness and you will make God "at home in your house".  

Art:
1. Stamp and fussy cut all your paper pieces out then assemble with glue pen. I used the Illustrated Faith Seeds of Faith, She Blooms, & Delight in His Day paper collections. 

2. Using Derwent Inktense pencils lay a watercolor wash to the background. Mist the whole page with water then using a water brush pick up the color directly from the pencil and apply to page.

My verse was at the bottom of the page so I needed to modify where I put the 'grass'. I felt a lil scrappy so I just went with it. :) Hope you learn something new!

Grab your Love Your Neighbor set here.

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In Him,

Elizabeth